Hi,
Quote:
Originally Posted by fluteman
I read Solomon's patent, have yet to read Toyota's. My initial take is there's patent infrigement, Solomon's patent explains very much what the system actually is. Two electrical power sources converging on a single transmition/energy regeneration/infinite speed/sun gears unit. NASA is actually using/licensing Solomon's technology for Mars Rovers.
. . .
|
Although Solomon has a nice patent, it may have been issued in error. There is prior art from TRW in 1971 that predates Solomon. I suspect Toyota has made reference to TRW in its patent:
http://www.patentstorm.us/patents/6387004-claims.html
TRW has standing because of this:
"The classic electro-mechanical power split transmission developed by TRW and published in a 1971 SAE paper is the basis of today’s electric power split systems. G.H. Gelb, N. A. Richardson, T.C. Wang, B. Berman, “An Electromechanical Transmission for Hybrid Vehicle Powertrains,” SAE paper no. 710235, Jan. 1971" (Comparative Assessment of Hybrid Vehicle Power Split Transmissions, John M. Miller, J-N-J Miller, January 12, 2005, slide 3)
It is not uncommon for parallel development to occur and similar patents get filed. That is why patent law is so profitable. However, my reading is TRW has the stronger claim.
Sad to say but the testimony for this dispute remains sealed. If there is evidence Toyota engineers used Solomon's work, my opinion would change. But even Solomon never publicly claimed "engineer so and so" had done it. In fact, it looked like Toyota presented a great deal of technical data about their analysis of the optimum configuration that Solomon did not have.
I suspect Toyota had patented a specific implementation and Solomon was trying to claim the whole based upon broader napkin sketches. Sad to say, Solomon lost in the trade commission because there was no evidence of Toyota going after Solomon's established customer base. There was no economic impact upon an established customer base.
BTW, the US International Trade Commission web site allows folks to register and gain access to the public documents in a dispute. Although the really interesting parts were kept secret to protect trade secrets, there was enough information in the peripheral motions and claims to give a hint about how it was argued. But gosh, some of those secret documents would make terribly interesting reading!
Bob Wilson